The Lone Demon
by roo17
Summary: Naruto is living a happy, normal life until one day he meets Sabaku no Gaara. Ever since their meeting, his life has turned upside down. Yaoi!
1. Chapter 1: Naruto

The Lone Demon  
Chapter One: Naruto

**Summary: Naruto is living a normal, happy life until one day he meets the dark Sabaku no Gaara. Ever since their meeting, his life has been turned upside down. Yaoi!.**

**XxXxX**

_Cold, hard eyes met his soft, blue eyes. He felt sweat trickle down his neck as he swallowed. He felt his hands grow moist and his legs, slightly weak. He opened his mouth to speak, but couldn't find his voice. He swallowed once again as he continued to stare right back at the redhead, leaning more heavily against the brick wall behind him. 'So this…' Naruto thought. '…Is Sabaku no Gaara…'_

**XxXxX**

It was a bright and beautiful day in Konoha. The normally hot summer day was rather cool as small, white, puffy clouds littered the bright blue sky; a small breeze swaying the tops of high tree tops. On a small grassy hill just outside the town stood a boy no older than thirteen, his short and soft blond hair moving fluently with the wind. His blue as the sky and ocean eyes looked down at the leafy green town. Six whisker-like marks were etched on either of his cheeks. The boy wore an orange shirt with a red spiral-like shape in the middle and tan knee-low shorts. A grin crossed his face as he tightened the headband on head, said item bearing the sign of Konoha. It was customary that everyone of the land should wear a headband to show what village they are from. Konoha's symbol was hard to describe, so we'll just leave it at that. The blond boy ran down the hill towards his town and home.

He reached his house out of breath with sweat running down his face. He took out his keys and unlocked his front door. Yes, Naruto was only twelve and he already had his own house. It was small, only four rooms occupying the apartment like house. There was a bedroom, a kitchen, a bathroom and a guestroom. It was a small gift from Kakashi and Iruka, two of Naruto's 'father' like figures. His other father like figure was Jiraiya; an old, pervy writer that created the 'Icha Icha Paradise' series that Kakashi loved to read. He shed his sweat-soaked shirt and tossed it into the dirty laundry basket that was in his room. He made his way to the kitchen and found himself reaching into one of six wooden cabinets above the stove, his hand searching for his favorite food.

"Ah-ha! Gotcha!" He exclaimed as he pulled out a packet of instant ramen. He set the packet on the counter and pulled out a pot from the shelf, filling it up with two cups of lukewarm water. He then set the item on the stove over a medium flame. As he waited for the water to boil, he walked into his neat room and over to his dresser. He opened the second the drawer and pulled out a clean pair of boxers and nightshirt. Naruto set these articles of clothing down in the bathroom, making his way over to the kitchen where is water had started boiling. He shut off the flame and opened his packet of ramen, dumping the dried noodles into the water along with the sauce and seasoning. His mouth began to water as the aroma of the noodles hit his nose. He smiled contently as he picked up chopsticks and made his way to the kitchen table to eat. "Finally, chow time!" He slurped up the noodles with a smile on his face.

After he finished his delicious ramen and washed his dishes, he walked into the bathroom to take a warm relaxing shower. As the hot water ran down his shoulders, he could feel his muscles unknot and relax. Yes, there was nothing better than his daily afternoon plans. Go to school, walk to grassy hill, run home, eat ramen, take shower, have fun, eat dinner, sleep. Such a simple yet fun life he lived. He loved it. If there was one thing that Naruto didn't like, it would probably be complex things. As he stepped out of the shower, he dried himself with his blue towel and put on his nightclothes. 'Three more hours till sleep… what to do…" Naruto decided to listen to his wii until dinnertime came around. He lay down on his comfy faded orange sheets and stared at the ceiling, drifting off into his own little world.

**XxXxX**  
**Muahahaha! How was that? Did it suck? Did it rock? Did you even read it? XD**  
**Well, if you read it, I would like to hear your feedback please! Whether it be good or bad, up or down, or side-to-side! Just click the review button pwease! Have a great day/night!**


	2. Chapter 2: Gaara

The Lone Demon  
Chapter Two: Gaara

**XxXxX**

It was a bright and hot day in Suna. The normally hot summer day was more humid then usual, not a single cloud in the sky; but a rather strong wind echoed through the town causing the desert sand to stir in the air. On a giant sand dune just outside the town sat a boy of thirteen years old, his short and soft red hair blowing in the wind. His teal eyes looked down at the desert town below, his smooth skin unbothered by the rough, flying sand. A red kanji tattoo ai (love) occupied the left side of his temple and soft, dark rings outlined his eyes. His face was still impassive as he stood up and began to make his way down the sand dune.

Gaara walked down the streets of the desert town Suna, heading in the direction his house was. As he passed by many townsfolk, they would do numerous things. One, some would get out of his way as soon as possible. Two, some would stare with horror in their eyes. Three, some would grab their children and run inside their houses. Or four, they would give hateful stares at the redhead. Yes, Gaara was a boy that no one liked. He opened the door of his house, not even bothering to lock it. He made his way to his bedroom, grabbing a bag of chips on the way. He flicked on the lights to his room and looked around. His bedroom walls where painted black with red paint painted as blood splatters running down the walls. (Something his father wasn't pleased with… then again, nothing ever pleased him.) Next to his bed was a calabash-shaped gourd filled with sand, one of his favorite possessions. Next to his black-sheeted bed was a window with a small view of the wide-open desert. His wooden dresser just left of the door, the closet next to the dresser. Gaara walked in and took a seat on his bed, reaching over to his nightstand to pick up his ipod touch. It was a small gift his brother and sister had gotten him for his birthday seven months ago.

Temari and Kankuro were Gaara's older siblings, Temari being the oldest. Temari was currently fifteen and Kankuro was fourteen. They were currently away doing some business for father. Their father was the leader of Sunagakure, the fourth Kazekage, and was one of the people Gaara truly hated. Gaara's eyes landed on the letter his father left him the day before, still unopened. He picked up the item, tore it open and read it.

'_Gaara,  
As Kazekage I have a lot of council members that visit the town. More than usual have this meeting and I am out of rooms. All the hotels have been booked and no guests are leaving anytime soon. It is still unclear how long they will stay, so I am letting them stay in your house. Make sure it is_ thoroughly _cleaned and tidy. Until they leave, you shall be staying in Konoha. I have already rented you a small house there. You need to out of the house by Thursday. Also, if you want, you can enroll into Konoha Inter while you're at it. Maybe you'll like it._

_Signed, The Kazekage'_

Gaara crushed the letter in a ball, throwing it against his bedroom wall. Great, just what he needs. Some strangers staying in his house while he's gone. The redhead glanced at his calendar. It read Tuesday. At least he had a whole day to pack. _'Pack what?'_ Gaara thought. It's true Gaara owned very little stuff, so the most he would need would be a medium sized suitcase for his clothes and a bag for his bedding and tablets. Gaara re-read the last part of the letter. _'Maybe you'll like it.'_ Gaara snorted. His father didn't care if he liked it or not. It was his father's way of saying, _'pack up, leave, and don't come back.'_ Gaara reached under his bed and pulled out his old suitcase. Surprisingly, there wasn't a speck of dust on it. As Gaara walked over to his dresser to pack his clothes, he took a moment to think. _'Maybe this won't be as bad as it seems…'_ After that thought, Gaara rolled his eyes.

"Of course it'll be bad. Nothing _ever_ goes right for me."

**XxXxX  
There's another chapter! I have a pretty good idea where this will be going so yay! Oh, I know you guys wanted longer chapters and I forgot to tell you this will be the last short chapter. These first two are just little quickies on the characters. So hopefully, the next chapter will be somewhere around 3,000 words? We'll just have to see if these hands can type that much! XD  
And thanks for the wonderful reviews! It makes me so happy! ^^**

**WILL BE UPDATED TOMORROW :)**


	3. Chapter 3: Shopping

The Lone Demon  
Chapter Three: Moving

**XxXxX**

**Gaara's Point of View**

The morning was quiet as usual, the sun not even over the horizon yet. I look at my suitcase and bag full bedding, nodding approvingly. It only took me half an hour to pack everything up. As for my gourd of sand, I'll be caring it on my back again until I reach my 'new house.' I can feel the chill of the early morning breeze hit my skin, causing me to shiver slightly. I look over at my clock. 5:13 AM. I hear footsteps approach my door and I don't need to turn around to know who it is. My father opens the door with a slight knock, the door creaking quietly.

"You all packed?" I give a nod. I try my best not to be around the man and make little contact with him. As I turn to grab my bags, I can see he's still wearing his white Kazekage robes. "Baki's in the car already waiting for you. I'll send you a letter when the council members will be leaving." We head out the front door and walk to Baki's car. It's an olive-green Element. Typical. I throw my two bags and gourd in the backseat and make my way to the passenger door, opening it. Before I get in the car, I hear my father again. "See you soon." I get in the car and slam the door shut.

**Readers Point of View**

Baki started up the car and put into gear, the car not making a sound. Gaara put on his seatbelt and crossed his arms over his chest, something he always did when he was around people. It was a three-hour drive from Suna to Konoha. Baki had only been driving for a minute, but he already hated the long trip they had to go. It's true Baki had been watching over Temari, Kankuro, and Gaara ever since they were seven, but Baki was never comfortable with Gaara. He never had been and neither had the town. He glanced over at Gaara who was staring out the window and gave a small sigh.

"You gonna enroll in Konoha Inter while staying there?" Gaara gave a shrug of the shoulders, a sign that meant he didn't want to talk. Baki put his focus back on the road and gave a mental sigh. This was going to be a long trip…

**XxXxX**

Naruto yawned tiredly as he made his was out of the bathroom and into the kitchen to make some breakfast. "Must… eat… ramen…" He slouched as he stood there with his hand in the cabinet, searching for his breakfast. He started to slightly panic when his hand couldn't find the ramen, but gave a breath of relief when he found it all the way in the back. "Guess I gotta go buy more today. I wonder if Iruka will let me borrow some money…" He started to boil water for his noodles and patiently waited near the stove. While he waited, he glanced at the clock. "It's only eight? We'll no wonder I was tired… I usually sleep in till nine-thirty." He poured the boiling water onto the dried noodles and added all the packets that came with the package. Finally, he sat down and ate his delicious ramen. After that, he set the dish into the sink and let out a burp. "Ah, much better. Now… onto the bathroom!" He pointed to the bathroom and made his way said room, opening another cabinet to grab his toothbrush.

Yes, Naruto was the type of boy who would talk to himself if there was no one else to talk to. That was just the way Naruto worked. If anyone didn't like it, well then too damn bad. He grinned approvingly of his clean self as he threw on a new t-shirt. The t-shirt was black with a small chibi orange nine-tailed fox on the front. Under the fox it said 'Kyuubi: the nine-tailed fox'. Yes, Kyuubi was the demon fox that haunted Konoha for years. But twelve years ago, it was finally killed, finally relieving the townsfolk of the demon. The Kyuubi was the strongest of the all nine demons and was the last one to be killed. It was also one the biggest demons too, towering at least 60 feet. Naruto was almost sad that he didn't get to see it in real life, as he only saw photos of it. But at the same time, he was also glad that the beast was gone. He put on fresh black shorts and his headband and opened his front door, taking in a deep breath of morning air. He locked his door and looked at his neighborhood.

There were only five houses down this dead-end street, three on this side of the road and two on the other side. But no one lived in any of the houses, so I guess you could call it a haunted neighborhood. But this didn't bother Naruto too much; he kind of liked the quiet sometimes, especially if he wasn't in a good mood. But as he looked over to his left, he noticed a green Element parked in the garage. He blinked. "Did someone move in?" He asked himself out loud. He noticed a man with a bandana (we'll just stick with that) on his head along with a headband. Naruto squinted, but couldn't make out the sign on the item. He noticed the man get in the car and drive off, not even glancing at Naruto. The boy gave a small glare at the retreating car and a sarcastic wave. "Yeah, have a nice day to you too… Jerk." A door slamming caught Naruto's attention once again, forcing him to look back at the house to his left. "I guess someone did move in… I better welcome them to Konoha later." And with that, Naruto happily walked to Iruka's house to ask for some money.

**XxXxX**

Gaara slammed the front door shut and turned around to look at rooms. To the right there was the living room, complete with twin couches, a chair, a coffee table and a T.V. Oh and yes, a rug. To his left there was the kitchen. In it was a long kitchen table (enough to fit eight people), a stove, a refrigerator, cabinets, and a sink. He moved through the living room and up some stairs. Once up the stairs, he found himself in a small hallway with three doors: two to his left and one on his right. He opened the right door first. He found himself in a room that was much similar to his own back in Suna, except these walls were painted white. He'd have to go buy some paint today; he couldn't stand pure white bedroom walls anymore. Not since that day…

Gaara slammed the door shut and turned around to see where the other doors led. The nearest door to his right was the door for the bathroom, consisting of just a sink, bathtub and toilet. He kept the door open as moved on to the next door, which was now in front of him. He opened it up and noticed it was similar to the other bedroom. "A guest bedroom…" Gaara mumbled. He slammed this door shut too. Well, since he had nothing better to do, he decided to start unpacking his bags.

**XxXxX**

Naruto grinned as he pocketed thirty dollars, closing Iruka's front door behind him. Ah yes, Iruka could never resist to Naruto's puppy eyes. Heck, not even Kakashi could say no to them! "With me and my puppy eyes, I'm invincible!" Naruto cheered, earning odd stares from passing neighbors. The hyper blond made his way over to KTA, which was only a mile away from where Iruka lived.

It was crowded today at the supermarket, people entering and exiting the building constantly. Naruto noticed a small child around five crying in the passing crowd near the entrance and ran to her side. "Hey, is everything okay?" He asked, concerned.

"My, my mommy! I can't find her!" She continued to cry into her hands, cause Naruto to look at the ground. He suddenly took her hand and looked in her eyes, his own eyes filled with determination.

"I'll take you to your mommy, okay? Did she go in the store?" The girl nodded, her sobs starting to slow down. "What did you guys come here to buy?"

"We were gonna buy cookies and brownies." Naruto nodded and started to lead the child into the crowded store.

"Hold onto my hand tight, I don't want you to get lost." The girls grip tightened, but Naruto noticed she was on the verge of crying again. "So, do you and your mom have tea parties?" The small girl gave a tiny smile.

"Yeah, me, her and my friends! It's so much fun!"

"Yeah? What do you guys normally talk about?"

"We, we, we talk about the clouds and and the sky and how pretty the sun is…" The girl's smile started to grow wider and wider, cause Naruto to smile.

"Lana! Lana, where are you?" Naruto turned to the source of the voice, finding a rather beautiful woman with long brown hair and blue eyes. "Lana!" Naruto looked down at the girl.

"Is your name Lana?" The girl nodded. Naruto waved his hand up at the lady calling for her child. "Oi, ma'am! Lana's right here!" The woman looked at him before running over to him, taking her child in a hug.

"Lana! There you are! I was so worried!" Naruto smiled.

"She was at the entrance crying for you. I guess she got lost in the crowd." Lana's mother looked up at him and smiled gently.

"Thank you so much, sir! Is there anything I can do for you?" Naruto just scratched his cheek sheepishly.

"No, that's okay. I'm good." The woman nodded before saying her thanks once more, warming Naruto's heart. He loved to help others, that's why he was aiming to become Hokage, Konoha's leader. He made his way to the ramen section before grabbing a whole case, heading towards a cashier. He paid for his food and left the store, heading in the direction of home, which was two and a half miles away. His mind wandered to his new neighbor. "I wonder what kind of neighbor they are and where they're from… Maybe they have some kids my age that I can hang with."

When he finally reached home, he put away his ramen and looked around. Wasn't there something else he needed to buy? Something at Wal-mart? Oh yeah! A lamp and can opener! Of course! That meant Naruto had to walk to the bust stop and catch the bus, which luckily wasn't too far away. He made his way through the front door again, locking it. He gave a glance one more time to the newly occupied house before setting off. He'd defiantly have to welcome his neighbor to Konoha.

**XxXxX  
And THAT, my dear readers, is why I don't like making sort of long chapters. I suddenly think that if it's too long, to me, it looks like I'm ranting on with the story and making it sound boring. So… how'd you like it? What do you guys think? Thanks for all the reviews! It makes me so happy! ^^**


	4. Chapter 4: School

**The Lone Demon  
Chapter Four: School**

**(A/N: XxXxX- means next scene. _xXxXx_- means small time skip.)**

**XxXxX**

Naruto wasn't in such a great mood anymore. Staring out the bus window, he rested his chin in his hand; his mind wondering about nothing in particular. Next to him, his new lamp and can opener sat cozily in their plastic Walmart bags. While making his way out of Walmart, some snotty twenty-three year old guy had the guts to make fun of Naruto's whiskered cheeks and yell at him. Of course, this never would have brought Naruto down, but the guy did a _damn_ good job of blaming _him_ for the destruction of Konoha twelve years ago, not the Kyuubi. But right after the guy had started yelling all this stuff at him, several people stopped dead in their tracks to defend the blond boy. It was nice to know that people would stick up for him, even if they all knew of the events that happened twelve years ago to him. This put a small smile the blonds lips. At least he was loved by most of the townsfolk, even if few people still didn't like him.

The bus stopped at Naruto's stop, the blond boy giving his thanks to the old bus driver. As the bus pulled away, Naruto flung his bags over his shoulder and started to walk home. The bus stop was just half a mile away from his house, so he didn't really mind the walk. After all, exercise is good for a growing boy, right? He stared at the scattered cloud sky with curious eyes, wondering what it would be like to be as soft as a cloud. Then his eyes wondered to the ground, his eyes looking at the clumps of grass that grew in the cracks of the sidewalk. He reached his house as he pulled out his keys from his pocket, his mind finally wondering to his new neighbor. He looked at the house before sighing. He really wasn't in the mood to greet someone to Konoha anymore. If anything, he could do it tomorrow after he came home from school. He walked into the living room, setting down his two bags on the couch. He plopped down on said piece of furniture before yawning and closing his eyes, drifting in a deep sleep.

**XxXxX**

Gaara watched as his neighbor walked up to his front door, glancing at Gaara's house before entering his own house. Why had the blond bothered to look at Gaara's house, the redhead did not know. In fact, Gaara noticed the blond looked rather down, like someone had teased him or something. But the redhead didn't care; he didn't care for anyone but himself, but sometimes his siblings. Yes, the great Sabaku no Gaara slightly loved his siblings, though he had to admit they could really be a pain in the ass sometimes. He took a seat on his bed, flicking a piece of white fluff off his black sheets. As bored as the redhead was, he wasn't in the mood sightsee Konoha. He looked over at his gourd that seemed to be calling him, the sand stirring ever so slightly. His stomach gave a quiet growl, causing him to tear his gaze away from the gourd.

He made his downstairs to the kitchen, opening the partially filled refrigerator. He pulled out a piece of chicken Baki had bought him on the way to the house, quickly throwing said piece of food on a plate and popping it in the microwave. He checked the calendar that was next to the microwave. July eighteenth, Sunday. Tomorrow would make the perfect sightseeing day, all the adults would be at work while all the kids would be at school. He wouldn't be bothered by anyone.

He took his piece of chicken out of the microwave and made his way back upstairs, entering his white-walled bedroom. He slightly scowled. He was going to have to buy some black and red paint at Walmart or Ace Hardware tomorrow.

**XxXxX**

Naruto ran down the halls of Konoha Inter, his backpack strapped tightly to his back. The bell rang a millisecond after he entered his first period class. "I'm safe!" He called out to Kakashi, his English teacher. Kakashi didn't even take his eyes off his Icha Icha Paradise book, waving a dismissive hand at Naruto. Said boy took a seat next to his friend/rival: Sasuke Uchiha. The raven-haired boy was wearing his favorite dark blue shirt that said in white letter _'Shut up and leave me alone.' _He also wore his favorite tan shorts, his headband on his forehead. His dark eyes landed on Naruto as the boy let out of sigh of relief.

"You were almost late again, dobe."

"Shut up, teme."

"Make me."

"Alright students." Kakashi announced as he stood up, his eyes on Sasuke and Naruto. "Did everyone bring their textbooks?"

"No." Said a random kid in the back of the class.

"Minus five points." Kakashi said, earning an, 'aw man' from the student in the back.

"Open your textbooks to page five-thirty-six. Do problems one through six, then it's free time." Ah, what an easy class. Sasuke finished his quickly, giving help to the blond only once before he too finished.

"That was easy." Naruto grinned. "Now we have fifty minutes to kill in class. Hey Sasuke, what time do we get out today? 1:20?"

"Yep." Naruto took his and Sasuke's paper up to Kakashi and set them on his desk. On the way back to his seat, Sakura bumped his shoulder.

"Sorry Naruslut."

"No problem Sakuwhore." Sakura was one of the popular girls who only had her eyes for Sasuke. Sadly Sasuke didn't have any interest in the pink-haired girl or any other girls. Sakura always sat with Ino, her blond-haired/blue-eyed rival/friend. (Wow, lotta slashes XD.) Together, those two were always getting into arguments and bickers. Naruto rolled his eyes as the two started to fight over Sasuke again. "Must suck to have the girls attention all the time." Naruto set his chin in his hand as he stared boredly at the clock on the wall.

"You have no idea." Sasuke muttered.

_**xXxXx**_

As the clock hit 9:30, the bell rang and students flooded hallways; the sound of lockers opening and closing echoed through the halls. Naruto ran up to his locker, which was locker thirteen. As he emptied his bags of his textbooks and filled it with new books, he ease dropped on some passing conversations.

"Did you hear Misaka and Joey are going out?" "Really? I never expected those two to date!" "Neither did I!"

"And I said 'just shut the fuck up before I punch your face in.' And she was all like 'just wait you bitch, I'll get you one day.'" "God, she's such a whore!" "I know, right?"

"So, babe, what are you doing next week?" "I was thinking maybe you and me could go watch a movie?" "Sure, which one?" "Surprise me." One conversation instantly caught Naruto's attention as the three guys walked by.

"So did you hear?" "Hear what?" "I heard Sabaku no Gaara moved into town a couple of days ago." "You serious?" "You mean the kid who's said to have killed one hundred-forty-five people?" "Yeah. Man, I hope he doesn't enroll here." "No kidding." "I also heard he has a monster inside him." "Dude, that's not possible. All the bijuu have been destroyed." "Well, that's what I heard." "Whatever man, the kids a freak either way."

'_Sabaku no Gaara? Here in Konoha?'_ Naruto thought._ 'I wondered where he moved to… Hopefully nowhere where I live.'_ Naruto was pulled out of his thoughts when his friend Kiba tapped him on the shoulder.

"Hey Naruto! What's up?"

"Just getting my things ready for my next class."

"Cool. So, you going to the party tonight?"

"What party?"

"Ten-Ten is throwing a party at her house. You gonna come?"

"Sure, if Tsunade doesn't have any chores for me to do."

"Alright, see ya later tonight Naruto!"

"See ya, Kiba!" Kiba ran off into the crowd of students as Naruto shut and locked his locker. He made his way to his second class that was with Iruka.

**XxXxX**

Gaara walked around Walmart, looking for the paint section. He nearly went mad just staring at the white wall all night, so he had to spend the night in the living room reading a book. It was nights like last night that Gaara wished he could sleep. If only he didn't have that damn insomnia problem…

He soon found himself in front of paint section, the cans of paint put in color code. All the way to his left were the whites and all the way at the end of his right were the blacks; in between having all the colors. First, he went and grabbed a gallon of black pain, and then he grabbed a half-gallon of blood-red paint. He brought them up to a cash register and let the cashier ring them up.

"Alright, sir. That'll be eighteen dollars and thirty-two cents." Gaara handed the man a twenty. "Here you go, dollar sixty-eight as your change and have a nice day!" The man said in an almost too cheery voice for Gaara. He took his change, grabbed his bags and headed out of Walmart. He decided what to do next and chose to just walk around Konoha, his bags in hand.

**XxXxX**

Naruto stared at the ceiling boredly. He wanted the bell to ring already, as there was no one to bother in this class. His current class was Study Class, with Iruka-sensei. "Iruka-sensei, I'm bored."

"Just a little longer till the bell rings, Naruto." Iruka replied while helping another student with his work. Naruto swung his legs under his desk as he continued to stare at the ceiling.

"Hey Iruka-sensei, did you know your ceiling has two-hundred-sixteen lines?"

"Naruto, I'm trying to help a student." Naruto sighed. He. Was. Bored!

"Hey Iruka-sensei…"

"Naruto, say one word and you'll get detention." Naruto groaned. Someone knocked on the classroom door, catching all the students' attention. "Naruto, can you get that?" The blond got up from his desk and answered the door, finding a tall woman on the other side. She had light brown hai and eyes.

"Hey Shizune."

"Hello Naruto. Tsunade wishes to see you within the hour."

"Alright! I'll be there soon!" They gave their farewell bows before Naruto headed to seat to grab his backpack. "Oi, Iruka-sensei! I'm gonna go see Tsunade, see ya later!"

"Bye Naruto! Don't get in trouble on the way there." Naruto grinned.

"Don't worry, I won't." And with that, Naruto left his Study Class to meet Tsunade, the leader of Konohagakure; the fifth Hokage.

**XxXxX  
Muahaha! Why am I laughing evilly? I don't know! Muahaha! So I'll try and make the chapters a bit long. It's still a little hard for me, but I think I'm getting the hang of it. Yes! No more school! Summer break at last! Yesterday was the last day of the Pow Wow, and I can't wait for it to come back next year! ^^ So please review my story! Please? :3**


	5. Chapter 5: Meeting

The Lone Demon  
Chapter Five: Meeting

**XxXxX**

Naruto grinned widely as he made his way down a slightly busy street. He was glad granny Tsunade pulled him out of class for two reasons. One, he was bored out of his mind in Iruka's class and two, he didn't have to go to science class. That meant he didn't have to see Mr. Pedophile himself, aka Orochimaru. Hell that guy was a creep, eyeing all the boys in the school; especially Sasuke. He'd have to report the guy to Tsunade after he's finished with the chores she's gonna give him. He stopped in front of the biggest building in Konoha, the Hokage's building. He pushed open the glass doors and made his way to the front desk, meeting Shizune again. How she got to the school way faster than Naruto is one thing the boy would never understand. _'It must be an assistant thing.'_

"Hello again, Naruto. I do believe you already know what room and floor Lady Tsunade is on?"

"Seventh floor, third door on right." He walked to his left and pressed the elevator button, rocking back and forth on his feet waiting. The elevator made a ding sound as its doors opened, revealing a dark red interior. The velvet red walls were always so clean and the floor, so soft. The blond boy entered the transporter and hit the seventh floor button, the doors closing silently.

Naruto continued to rock back and forth on his feet, his hands behind his back. He tried hard to block out the sound of the elevator music, but failed miserably. His palms became slightly sweaty and his eyes flickered from one side of the elevator to the other repeatedly. His grin faltered, his eye twitched and he started to have a hard time breathing. He backed up into the elevators back right corner, as if he were cornered by a group of gangsters, shivering. He slid down the wall, leaning against the soft velvet walls. He placed his hands over his ears and started murmuring to himself. The elevator door dinged again as it opened slowly. Naruto took this chance to escape the hellish nightmare. He dove out of the elevator and rolled on the ground landing on his back. He took in deep breaths and opened his eyes, seeing Tsunade standing above him.

"Hey granny Tsunade!" Naruto grinned, as if nothing had just happened. She grinned back.

"Hello Naruto. Have fun on the elevator ride?"

"Yep! But you _really_ gotta get rid of the elevator music. It's enough to drive anyone crazy, dattebayo."

"Trust me, it has before. Now, shall we enter my office?" Naruto got to his feet, wiping off the imaginary dust off his clothes and shouldering his backpack into a comfortable position. The two made their way to the third door on the right.

**XxXxX**

Temari sighed heavily. She really wanted to be back home in Suna at the moment, not running around in the Village Hidden in the Mist looking for some crazed bridged builder for her father. She'll admit it; she didn't really like her father. In fact, he wasn't much of a father at all. She looked in the window of a store, something large catching her eye. It was a fan, one similar to the she wanted back in Suna. Only this one had eight red circles, not three purple ones. Temari had an obsession with fans, giant ones; three feet high and four feet wide when opened. She always wanted to learn how to fight using fans, but sadly, it wasn't possible for fans to be used as weapons. Speaking of weapons, her mind drifted to Gaara. _'I hope he's doing alright…'_ She was snapped out of her thoughts when she heard someone call her name from across the street.

Kankuro was in just as good of a mood as Temari was. He didn't want to be in this damp, boring town looking for someone who probably didn't even exist for a person he didn't really like. He shoved his hands into his pants pocket, giving a small curse under his breath. He wondered how Gaara was, and what he was doing at the moment. _'Hopefully he isn't murdering another person… Father wouldn't like that.' _Kankuro grimaced. Who _cares_ what his father liked and didn't like? He didn't deserve anything he liked, not after what he done to their family. That was one of the reasons Kankuro didn't like his appearance. He was practically a spitting image of his father. Same brown hair, same dark eyes, and same mouth. So, Kankuro started wearing makeup— I mean _'war paint.'_ He saw a puppet hanging in a store window and grinned. His sister may have had an obsession with fans, but Kankuro had an obsession with puppets. Life sized puppets were his favorite, he even carved himself a few at home. He looked across the street and saw his sister gazing at a fan in a window. Of course.

"Oi, Temari!" He ran across the empty street to meet up with his older sister. "Any luck finding Mr. Creep?" Temari simply shook her head. "Damn… I don't think this guy even exists. I think it's just a way for dad to get us out of town for a while."

"Why would he do that?" Temari asked. "Sure, he doesn't like Gaara, and we don't like him, but likes having us around." Kankuro lowered his head, thinking of reasons their father wanted them out of town. He knew it probably had something to do with his younger brother.

"He wants Gaara out of the village right?" Temari nodded. "And he knows he won't let him kick Gaara out of his house while we're around, right?"

"So by making us leave the town, he'd be able to somehow get Gaara out of the house and possibly out of town?" Temari asked, slightly skeptic. Kankuro nodded. Yes, their father would do something like this to get rid of Gaara. "Then where would he send him? To Konoha?"

"Most likely. After all, our town just made an alliance with them."

"Alright, we'll head over to Konoha tomorrow morning. Right now, we're gonna go back to the hotel and rest." Kankuro grinned.

"Thank god, my feet are killing me." Temari simply rolled her eyes with a smirk.

**XxXxX**

"So make sure they're there before three, understand?" Naruto grinned, making his way out of the Hokage's office.

"Don't worry granny Tsunade, they'll get there on time! See ya later!" The hyper blond ran down the hall before Tsunade could scold him about 'respecting his elders.' He walked into the elevator and pushed the lobby button, a grin coming on his face again at the doors shut slowly again.

**xXxXx**

Naruto dove out of the elevator once again, taking in deep breaths to calm himself down. Shizune rolled her eyes and smiled as Naruto got to his feet, wiping off any dust on his clothes. "The boxes are already waiting outside near the door." Naruto made his way through the glass doors and looked to his right. There, in the corner, were three boxes stacked on top of one another. He picked up two of them in his arms, the second one already blocking his view. He slowly and carefully picked up the third box and set it on top of the second box, the stack towering over his head. He made his way down the street slowly, trying not to run into anything.

Five minutes into walking and he hadn't hit a single thing yet. (Probably cause there was no one on the street. Otherwise it could have been disastrous.) "I can do this…" His arms slightly shook (all three boxes together were _not_ light) as he continued to slowly walk down the sidewalk, keeping an eye out for the alley he was supposed to take the boxes too. "Where the hell is that alley… It should be somewhere around here right?" To caught up in looking for the alley on his left, Naruto didn't even hear someone walk right in front of him. He suddenly walked into something, brining him out of his thoughts. The third box fell from the top, a look of horror came over Naruto's face. "No! Please catch that box before it hits the—" A pale hand shot out and caught the box, allowing Naruto to a sigh with relief. "Oi, thanks for catching that. Tsunade said not to drop the boxes or else I'd be in big trouble. Ah, you wouldn't mind carrying that box for me would you? I'm just dropping them off in a bar in an alley around somewhere. Could you please?" Naruto couldn't see the person he was talking to, but he a couple of tips of red hair peeked out from top of the box blocking his view.

"Fine." A dark, emotionless voice responded, surprising the blond boy.

"Thanks. The alley is somewhere to left."

"I see it already." The voice replied. Well, whoever this person was, apparently they weren't really fond of talking. The two walked down the street until the other person told Naruto to turn into the alley. They turned into the alley; it was a dark, long alley with a dead end. At the end to the right of alley was the door to the bar these boxes were to be delivered to. Half way through the alley though, Naruto heard someone approach him from behind. _'Maybe they're just going to the bar.'_

"Ah, so thanks once again for helping me with this box. And sorry for running into you too." He didn't get a response from his helper. He heard the footsteps quicken, causing him to turn around. A giant hand slammed him into the wall and made it's way to his neck, almost causing him to drop the boxes.

"Hey kid, what's in the boxes?" A gruff voiced asked.

"G-Glasses." Naruto stuttered as the stranger's grip tightened around his neck.

"Too bad, thought it might be money or something."

"Can you let go now?" Naruto asked, a hint of annoyance in his voice. All he really wanted to do was deliver these boxes and get out of this stinking alley.

"But we never got to have our fun, have we boys?" Naruto heard two other voices laugh as the boxes in his arms were thrown aside, the glasses shattering to pieces. Naruto now saw who he was up against. The man holding his neck was around 5'9", probably weighing somewhere around 200 pounds. He wore a white tank top and black pants. He had short black hair and a spike belt on. The other two men were similar. Except one wore a black shirt and the other wore light grey pants. The hand around Naruto's neck tightened even more. "Now, shall we?" Naruto could hear the seduction the in the man's voice and visibly grimaced.

"Let me go!" Naruto shouted, kicking the man in the knee. The man gave a howl of pain and released Naruto to grab his knee. Naruto would have sprinted out of the damn alley if the other two strangers hadn't gotten a hold of him and thrown him back against the wall. His head bounced off the wall as they grabbed his neck once again, little air entering his lungs now. One of them pulled out a pocketknife and playfully tossed it around in the air.

"That actually hurt, brat." The man grinned. "I guess that means we're gonna have to mess with even more now…" He took the knife from one of his henchmen and held it to Naruto's stomach, causing the blond to stop struggling. "Now… lets play…"

A pale hand connected with the man's face, causing him to stagger back. The same pale hand met the other two strangers' faces, sending them falling to the ground. Naruto shut his eyes for a minute, taking in deep breaths and ignoring the pain in the back of his head. He continued to lean against the wall before opening his eyes. The three strangers were beat up badly on the ground and unconscious, leaving a pale boy the only one standing. He stared at the man's back for a second more, studying him. The boy slowly turned his head toward Naruto, and that's when it suddenly hit the blond.

Cold, hard teal eyes met his soft, blue eyes. He felt sweat trickle down his neck as he swallowed hard. He felt his hands grow moist and his legs, slightly weak. He opened his mouth to speak, but couldn't find his voice. He swallowed once again as he continued to stare right back at the redhead, leaning more heavily against the brick wall behind him. _'So this…'_ Naruto thought. _'…Is Sabaku no Gaara…'_

**So they finally meet! (I know it took forever for them to meet. Sorry XP) Now, should I end it (the chapter) right here, or should I continue on? Hm… I think I'll…CONTINUE ON! :D**

Naruto pushed away from the brick wall and gave the redhead a shaky smile. "T-Thanks for h-helping me." Naruto couldn't help but feel fear as he stared at the boy. Hell, who wouldn't be scared? This was Sabaku no Gaara! The one said to have killed over a hundred forty-five people! "S-So you're Gaara, right?" The redhead's teal eyes never moved from his as the silence between the two lingered on. Naruto stared at the redhead's knuckles, which were covered in blood. "Are you knuckles a-alright?" Still, the other boy did not speak. Nor did his eyes move from the blonds' face.

'_Whiskers?'_ Was the thought that ran through Gaara's mind as he stared at the blonds' face. He knew the other boy was trying to hide his fear, but wasn't doing a great job at the moment. Why Gaara had even decided to help the boy carry a box and beat up these guys that were ganging up on him was still unknown. The boy put on a shaky smile, pushing away from the wall. The blond slowly took a step toward Gaara, and then stopped.

"U-Um… Well, thanks for… taking care of these guys and all. It means—" Gaara knew they boy just wanted to make a conversation to break the silence.

"Those whiskers…" The boy immediately stopped talking and looked at Gaara, all fear gone.

"What?"

"Those whiskers… They're the Kyuubi's mark." The blond grew silent. "You host the Kyuubi, don't you." It was more of a statement than a question.

"I used to. The Kyuubi was actually sealed inside my mother twelve years ago. She insisted to have it sealed within her and not me, even though she knew the consequences would be death. Even though I was still in her stomach, the Kyuubi entered me for a few minutes, putting his mark on both my and my mother's cheeks. Before she went into labor, she let the townsfolk kill her before the Kyuubi could take over her body. I was born eight minutes later…" Naruto stared at the ground. Interesting how he never told anyone else this and yet, he's telling it to a complete stranger that could kill him at any second. Gaara didn't move his gaze from the boy.

"What's your name?"

"Naruto Uzamaki. You are Sabaku no Gaara, right?"

"Correct."

"Well then…" Naruto looked around the alley and grinned. "I guess I better give the last intact box to the bar." He picked up the box he had entrusted to Gaara earlier and made his way to the bar door. He knocked three times before the black door opened. "Ah, sir, here's the delivery of glasses from the Hokage." The man's eyes narrowed.

"Where are the other two boxes?"

"Well, the other two boxes got destroyed when I was attacked by some strangers… I'll go tell the Hokage to order you some more."

"You better…" The man mumbled before taking the box from Naruto. "Thanks." Naruto sighed and turned around to look at Gaara, giving the boy a sheepish grin.

"Well, I'm gonna have a hard time explaining this to the Hokage…"

**xXxXx**

"So you expect me to believe that three men came out of the blue and just attacked you for no reason?" Tsunade yelled.

"Well, they thought it was money, or at least something valuable."

"You dropped the two boxes didn't you, Naruto." It was a statement.

"I didn't, I swear!" Naruto stood up. "I can show you the three guys! They're still knocked out in the alley!"

"It's true." Gaara said as he opened the door to the Hokage's room. "I was the one who helped him carry the boxes to the bar." Naruto turned around to face the redhead.

"What are you—"

"Gaara." Tsunade's voice made Naruto turn back to the Hokage. "You're the Kazekage's son, are you not?"

"I am."

"What are you doing here in Suna?"

"I am to stay here a while until my father sends me back to Suna. I'm sorry for not saving the last two boxes Naruto were holding. I had to help him with the three strangers before he was seriously hurt." Tsunade nodded and turned her attention back to Naruto.

"Thank you Naruto, you may leave." The two boys left the Hokage's room and got in the elevator. As soon as the music came on, Naruto groaned.

"Ugh, I hate stupid elevator music!" Gaara's eye twitched. He had to agree with Naruto there. Gaara turned around and searched for the speaker in the elevator. He found it in the upper corner. He jumped up and ripped the speaker off the wall, the music dying immediately. Naruto just stared at the redhead who stood with his arms crossed. Gaara finally looked over at Naruto.

"What." Naruto smiled.

"My hero." The elevator door opened and the two walked out completely normal, much to Shizune's amazement.

"So the elevator music doesn't drive you nuts anymore, Naruto?" She asked. The boy gave her a grin before opening the glass door for his friend.

"I don't think it will be bothering me for a while now."

**XxXxX  
And there's the fifth chapter! I'm soo sorry it took a while for the two of them to meet! Please don't kill me! o.o Well, I'm gonna start working on the next chapter soon! Sorry if this wasn't the best chapter, I had writers block for a bit ^^'  
If you're wondering why I put the whole 'elevator music' thing in, I think it's true most of us don't like elevator music XD  
Reviews would be really nice, please? :)**


	6. Chapter 6: Friends

The Lone Demon  
Chapter Six: Painting

**XxXxX**

Naruto kept his eyes on the dull ground as he continued to walk next to Gaara. He had no idea why he was still with him, why he hadn't run for his life already. The heavy awkward silence still hung in the air, not a word was said between them since they left the Hokage's building. Sweat rolled down Naruto's cheek. _'Damn, today's hotter than usual.'_ He sneaked a look at the redhead through the corner of his eye, curious as to what the boy was doing. He still had his arms crossed over his chest and kept a steady eye forward; his face still emotionless. Besides complex things, Naruto hated awkwardness. It always had a way of finding him. He ran through the thoughts of his mind, trying to find a way to break the thick silence.

"So… You said you're staying in Konoha until your dad sends you back. Why did he send you here in the first place?" Yes, good way to start a conversation! There was a pause before the other answered.

"As the Kazekage, he gets a lot of council meetings. This meeting, there were more council members than usual, so he had to rent out my house to them." _'So he has his own house too, huh?'_ "Yes, I have my own house." Naruto snapped his head up at Gaara, surprised.

"How did you know I was thinking—"

"You said it aloud."

"Oh…" Naruto propped his gaze back to the boring, grey ground; giving a small sigh as he did. "So… Where are you living at the moment?" Gaara's eyes fell on Naruto.

"I'm your neighbor." The bond stopped in his tracks, his eyes wide. Sabaku no Gaara… was _his neighbor?_ Naruto mentally slapped himself. Of course, only fate could be this cruel to him. Gaara stopped and looked back at him. He put on a nice smile and gave a slight bow, the redhead raising a non-existent eyebrow.

"Well then, I was gonna do this earlier but I didn't have the time. Welcome to Konoha, Gaara!" They redhead's eyes widened in surprise as he stood looking at the other boy. He didn't expect the blond to welcome him. In fact, he expected the blond to run from him, like everyone else does.

"Why are you welcoming me? Aren't you afraid of me?" Gaara asked as his eyes slightly narrowed in suspicion; his voice carried a slight amount of frustration. Naruto kept the small smile on his face.

"Yeah, I'm a little afraid of you. Who wouldn't be? But that shouldn't stop me from welcoming you to my home village. Everyone deserves a warm welcome." That was when Naruto noticed how beautiful Gaara's soft red hair looked in the sun. It almost looked like red velvet. He wanted to badly to reach out and touch it; he started to raise his hand but quickly caught himself. "So, Gaara, where ya headed?"

"Home." Their houses were already in sight when the question was asked, making Naruto feel even more of an idiot.

"Me too. Luckily I got no homework to do, so I can just sit back and relax. What are you gonna do?"

"I need to paint my room."

"Do you need help? I wouldn't mind helping you." Now they were standing between their houses, staring at their own home.

"Actually, I wouldn't mind a little help." Gaara would have said no, he never needed help from others. Usually because others were always afraid of him and usual stayed a good fifty feet from him. But he really wanted his walls painted already; he couldn't stand another night of the white walls mocking him. Naruto gave a grin and started to walk towards the house. "Why do even bother asking if I need help?"

"I feel like I owe it to you. After all, you saved my ass back in the alley." Gaara opened the door to his house and led Naruto in. "You don't lock your doors?" The redhead ignored the question and led Naruto upstairs to his bedroom. Naruto looked around the room as Gaara stood near the door, watching him. Naruto noticed a small bear partially hidden on the closet's top shelf. "You have a bear?" Gaara frowned and gave a small glare.

"Don't ask." Shivers ran down Naruto's spine as he nervously nodded in response_. 'I can't believe I'm in Sabaku no Gaara's room! I must be out of my mind!'_

"So what color are you painting your room?"

"Black. Here's the can of paint, I'll go get the brushes." Gaara headed out of the room and downstairs, leaving Naruto alone. The boy looked around the neat room. The boy didn't have many things. A few books, a couple of movies, few drawing tablets, and a gourd. He didn't even hear Gaara reenter the room. "Here." Naruto jumped and let out a surprised yelp, his arms covering his face as if he was being attacked.

"Ah, sorry. I didn't hear you come in." Naruto took his brush and pried open the paint can, dipping the brush in the thick, black liquid. Gaara did the same and soon they were painting the walls. While painting, Naruto would ask a few questions and Gaara would cautiously answer some of them. For others, he would glare and frown, so Naruto would simply ignore that certain subjeck. Soon, they had one wall painted. Naruto took a quick little time out as he took a seat on Gaara's bed. He looked at the gourd next to him, curious as to what was inside it. He reached over to pull the cork out, but noticed the gourd slightly move. He blinked at the item. "Uh, Gaara?" Gaara, who was standing on his bed painting a corner, didn't reply. "I think your gourd just moved."

"It's just in your mind." Within an hour and a half, they had all four walls painted. Naruto stood in the doorway and smiled at his work. Gaara looked at him and nodded. "Thanks for your help, Naruto." It was right there, when the redhead looked at him, did Naruto notice how alluring Gaara's teal eyes were. In fact, he noticed lots of things about the redhead right then and there. He didn't have eyebrows, his teal eyes were alluring, he had an ai kanji tattoo on his temple, the boy was slightly shorter than him and he had thick eyeliner around his eyes. Why hadn't he noticed these things before? Was it because he was too afraid of the boy? Heck, after spending an hour with him, he didn't even find the boy dangerous anymore! (Except when he brought up a few certain topics. Then the boy would give one hell of a glare.)

"Well, I had fun. Maybe we can hang out again tomorrow or something." Gaara tilted his head slightly.

"Hang out?" Naruto smiled and nodded.

"Yeah, something friends do. Don't you have any friends?"

"I've never had any before." This cause Naruto's smile to falter.

"Why? Cause they're all afraid of you?" He nodded. "Well, maybe if you stop killing people, that'll help. Gaara, why do you kill, anyway?" Naruto was curious now, and he wasn't afraid anymore. Okay, he was still afraid, but just hardly…

"It's none of your business." Wow, what an answer. But our brave Naruto pressed on. (Idiotically, of course.)

"It's okay to tell me, Gaara. I'll understand. If it's because you were put through pain, I can really under—"

"You could never understand all of my pain." Gaara slightly growled.

"I mean I didn't have friends for a while. Not until I turned eight did I have any. I was always teased and pushed around and hated because I bear the Kyuubi's mark. So you can tell me, I won't push you away like others have. I promise."

"I don't need friends, all they do is betray you."

"That's not true, Gaara. Just let me be your friend and—"

"Get out." Naruto looked hurt. He just wanted to comfort the boy and find out what was wrong. Even if he _was_ a killer, he still had a right to be loved and cared for.

"But Gaara, I—"

"Get out!" Gaara yelled, scaring the shit out of Naruto. Gaara walked towards Naruto to push him out of his room, causing the blond to back up. The gourd in Gaara's bedroom slightly stirred again. When Gaara pushed Naruto, Naruto shot his hand out and grabbed the boy's shirt to stop himself from falling, but it backfired. Both boys slowly tumbled and fell to the ground, Gaara on top of Naruto. The blond wrapped his arms around Gaara and the redhead stared in shock. As they hit the ground, Gaara's head landed on Naruto's chest. The two lay there for a second, catching their breath. Finally, Naruto realized he was hugging Gaara and looked at the boy. Naruto had a blush scrawled across his face while Gaara was still in shock. Gaara quickly got up, helping Naruto up without looking at him. "Sorry…" He muttered.

"N-No, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have grabbed you to stop me from falling. I-I guess I should go then…" Gaara watched as the blond quickly walked down the stairs and suddenly realized how cold he was. The hug, it felt warm and alien to him. It felt… nice. Before he could stop himself, he opened his mouth.

"You can stay if you want." Naruto looked up at Gaara with surprise, a smile slowly forming on his lips.

"Alright, I'll stay if you want me to. I have nothing else to do anyway." Gaara walked downstairs to meet to boy, both entering the kitchen. "So, why do—"

"You talk a lot." Gaara pointed out, cutting off the boy's question. Naruto looked down at the ground, a sheepish smile on his face.

"Heh, sorry. I guess you could say I'm kinda hyper and always looking for attention. I guess it's because I was ignored a lot when I was younger." Gaara got out a pot of water and started boiling it. He reached into one of the cabinets above the sink for two cups and brought out two teabags. While they waited for the water to boil, a silence hung in the air that Naruto was just dying to break. Gaara poured the steaming water into the cups and gave one to Naruto, who quickly took a little sip. "Wow, this really good. Thanks, Gaara." Gaara also took a sip, closing his eyes. He felt at ease around this boy. It was nice for a change, to have company.

"I know you have a lot of questions, so you might as well get a few off your chest." Naruto looked up.

"What?"

"I know you want to ask me some questions. It's taking all you got just to keep quiet." Gaara opened his eyes and looked at Naruto. "Am I wrong?"

"No, I do have some questions. Like, how come you wear so much eyeliner?"

"It's not eyeliner." Gaara took another sip of his warm tea.

"Oh. Then is it true you've killed a hundred-forty people?"

"No." A feeling of relief came over Naruto as he took a sip of his tea. "I've killed more." Naruto stopped swallowing his beverage and looked at Gaara, who was as calm as ever. "I've killed at least a hundred-eighty. Forty of the bodies were never found, so the police left it at a hundred-forty."

"W-Wow…" Naruto put his cup down on the table. "Heh, it's funny. You don't look strong and yet you've killed so many." Gaara set his drink on the table too and looked at Naruto.

"Looks can be deceiving. So the Kyuubi was killed off twelve years ago?" Naruto nodded. "Though it entered you for a few minutes, it didn't leave you any _power_, did it?"

"Well, if I get angry enough, my blue eyes turn red and my whiskers grow a little thicker. If I get real angry, a red aura around me forms a one-tailed fox. But I only got that angry once. But it doesn't make me any stronger, it's just looks." Naruto seemed to pout. "I wish it made me stronger. Well, it does, but it's barely noticeable."

"It's not an aura, it's called chakra."

"Chakra?"

"It's like chi almost, but it can only be used in hand signs. In ancient times, it was said ninjas used chakra to form ninjustu attacks. But since you said the chakra doesn't make you stronger, maybe part of the Kyuubi's chakra was left within you. It's another showing mark the Kyuubi gave." Gaara calmly explained. Naruto stared with awe before grinning.

"Wow, you sure are smart! You sure know a lot about the Kyuubi, even though you grew up in Suna." The redhead took a sip of his drink once more.

"I know a lot about the nine demons, especially the one-tail."

"Because it attacked your village?"

"You could say that." The two sat in silence as they finished off their drinks. "Do your friends know that you held the Kyuubi?"

"No. Only Sasuke does, and he's the only other one who knows about the red chakra thing too." Gaara's eyes slightly narrowed, causing Naruto to raise an eyebrow.

"Sasuke Uchiha?" Naruto nodded.

"Yeah, he and his older brother, Itachi, are the only survivors of the Uchiha clan."

"I heard about the incident in Suna." Naruto looked down into his drink. It was already five-thirty and the party started at six tonight. He told Kiba he would go, but right now… Gaara was more important. He wanted to get to know the boy, to know why he decided to kill those people.

"Gaara?" He got no answer, but he knew the other boy was listening. "Are you going to enroll in Konoha Inter?"

"I might. I don't know just yet."

"I hope you do. I don't have many friends, so it'll be nice if you were there." Gaara gave a sigh.

"I don't remember agreeing on being your friend."

"Well you're mine, even if I'm not yours." Naruto chubily replied.

"Fine." Naruto looked up at his companion.

"Huh?"

"I'll be your friend." Naruto grinned and drank the rest of his tea.

"Heh, I'm Gaara's friend. That's got a nice ring to it. Now you can trust with anything!"

"Not necessarily. Just because I agreed to be your friend doesn't mean I completely trust you."

"Aw, come on, Gaara! You can trust me! I would never hurt you! Ever!" Gaara snorted.

"I've heard that before."

"Hey, what's that supposed ta mea—" _'Oh,_' Naruto thought as he suddenly realized what Gaara meant. _'Maybe that's why he doesn't have friends. He has trust problems.' _Naruto bit his thumb, causing it to bleed. He took off his headband and drew a line of blood under Konoha's symbol. Gaara raised a non-existent eyebrow as the other boy showed him his headband. "I vow that I'll never hurt you, Gaara. I swear on my blood and dream of being Hokage that I won't let anyone hurt you again." Gaara's eyes widened as he stared surprised. Naruto's face was serious, his eyes filled with determination. No one ever wanted to be friends with him so much before. All anyone ever did to him was run away and cause him so much pain. But maybe that's why this boy hasn't run away yet. He didn't know the whole truth.

"As a test of your friendship," Gaara started, "I'll tell you one important thing." Naruto grinned as he wiped the blood off his headband and tied it back on his head. "Have you ever heard of Shukaku, the ichibi?"

"Shukaku?"

"Shukaku is the demon spirit of the sand. It is the one-tailed demon." Naruto stared at Gaara, wondering where this was going. "It can control the sand itself to it's own will. It's a _very_ dangerous bijuu."

"Okay." Naruto looked at the redhead. Gaara looked Naruto straight in the eyes as he said his next sentence.

"I host, and posses, the one-tailed bijuu: The Shukaku."

**XxXxX  
Muahaha! There's the next chapter! I hope you liked it! I scraped up my wrists trying to climb this tall tree, so it kinda took me a while to finish the chapter. Plus, I had no inspiration to write for a while, so it took me a long time just to get back onto the computer. So, I hope you enjoyed it. I know I'm kinda rushing things with Naruto and Gaara being friends, but I wanted to kinda get that part done with. So Gaara turns out to be a host! Is he one, or was he? Find out Naruto's reaction in the next chapter! Thanks! Review please! :)**


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